The present invention relates to a window structure of a vehicle, and more particularly to a window structure for a railway car, in which a window glass is adapted to be applied to a window opening portion of a body composed of upper and lower frame members, right and left pillar members and corner members.
In railway cars, since a window opening portion of a vehicle body is subjected to various forces which cause strains at the window opening portion due to distribution loads imposed on a vehicle body floor, machine loads under the body floor, body end loads imposed on connecting means, reaction forces from chassis to frame members and the like, it is necessary to construct the window opening portion to have rigidity and mechanical strength enough to withstand these forces.
In the conventional window opening portion of the vehicle body, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, a window frame assembly having a glass 1 fitted in and along a frame body 3 through a glass seal rubber 2 is mounted by mounting screws 4 through a vehicle body outer panel 5 onto upper and lower frame members 6 and right and left side pillar members 7 which constitute the vehicle body window opening portion. Accordingly, when various loads imposed to the vehicle body are applied to the opening portion constituting components such as the upper and lower frame members 6 and right and left side pillar members 7, although the opening portion constituting components share parts of the imposed loads, the imposed loads are substantially applied to corner outer panel portions 8 as best shown in FIG. 9. As a result, strains are generated at the corner outer panel portions 8. To eliminate the strains, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, attempt is made to provide corner reinforcing members 9 at the corner outer panel portions 8, thereby obtaining satisfactory rigidity and mechanical strength over the entire window opening portion as well as at the corner outer panel portions 8.
On the other hand, in order to maintain a water- and air-tight effect of the vehicle body interior and to ensure the seal effect for sealing the outer peripheral edges of the frame body 3 against the vehicle body outer panel 5 with seal members 10, it is necessary to shorten an interval of the mounting screws 4 of the frame body 3 as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14. Therefore, screw seats 11 for the mounting screws 4 must be provided inside of the corner outer panel portions. Such an arrangement is intricate.
Furthermore, in the conventional arrangement, it is very complicated to perform maintenance work on the seal portion, for example, the seal members 10 may be damaged when working between the frame body 3 and the vehicle body outer panel 5. Thus, the conventional arrangement suffers from various disadvantages.